EPrints on Cultural Heritage

The meaning of watching the snow shape of rabbit on the
mountainside of Azuma-kofuji (Just a snow, but it means something)

Akasaka, Makoto
(2008)
The meaning of watching the snow shape of rabbit on the
mountainside of Azuma-kofuji (Just a snow, but it means something).
In: 16th ICOMOS General Assembly and International Symposium: ‘Finding the spirit of place – between the tangible and the intangible’, 29 sept – 4 oct 2008, Quebec, Canada.
[Conference or Workshop Item]

Abstract (in English)

There is a mountain named Azuma-kofuji (1,705m)
with remained snow shape in Fukushima, Japan. The shape of
the remained snow seems like a rabbit, which shows “Snow
rabbit” at the time of snow melting yearly. In the region people
used to have said, when the rabbit appeared on the mountainside
of Azuma-kofuji, it’s a signal for sowing on the fields and the
time of the hatching work of silkworms. Because of change to
industrialization of filature works the traditional manufacture
and the provincial custom vanished in the 1930s. But after the
World War II the local newspaper took up the Snow rabbit and
began to campaign for the reassessment of local culture and
custom of the habitants. It was a steppingstone of reminiscence
of the Snow rabbit. What is meaning today the viewing of the
remained snow? We see and enjoy now the sign of spring like
ancient people did so.

Akasaka, Makoto. 2005. Advocacy of Vista-Heritage－The Important Role of viewing to Mountain for Setting in Japan－, Proceedings of ICOMOS 15th General Assembly and Scientific Symposium Volume 1, pp.4-7: